Be one of those who find the ‘narrow gate’

By Jere Geurin

Published: Friday, June 28, 2013 at 08:31 PM.

To the editor:

A few weeks ago, another letter-writer asserted that our Constitution is not based on the Bible. This argument is not new, does not wash and is another way of saying that our Founding Fathers (a quote from Jefferson was cited) were not men of faith and did not use godly principles (the Ten Commandments were mentioned) to form the foundational documents of our government.

By way of refutation, I urge readers to look up David Barton’s website (wallbuilders.com), where he reviews the history of the nation, including the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and shows how those two documents rest very firmly on the Bible. Genuine understanding of the strong relationship between the Bible and our Constitution, however, is derived best from reading all three documents: the Bible, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. You must read all of them to understand each of them.

Readers without knowledge of the Bible are without knowledge of God, and, in most cases, do not believe in His existence. Biblical belief cannot be defined in secular terms.

Rodney Stortz observed: “Christianity is not an ethic whereby if we keep the Ten Commandments, we are good Christians . . . Christianity is the miracle of a changed heart and a personal relationship with the living God.”

Finally, from the Apostle Paul: “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

A few weeks ago, another letter-writer asserted that our Constitution is not based on the Bible. This argument is not new, does not wash and is another way of saying that our Founding Fathers (a quote from Jefferson was cited) were not men of faith and did not use godly principles (the Ten Commandments were mentioned) to form the foundational documents of our government.

By way of refutation, I urge readers to look up David Barton’s website (wallbuilders.com), where he reviews the history of the nation, including the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and shows how those two documents rest very firmly on the Bible. Genuine understanding of the strong relationship between the Bible and our Constitution, however, is derived best from reading all three documents: the Bible, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. You must read all of them to understand each of them.

Readers without knowledge of the Bible are without knowledge of God, and, in most cases, do not believe in His existence. Biblical belief cannot be defined in secular terms.

Rodney Stortz observed: “Christianity is not an ethic whereby if we keep the Ten Commandments, we are good Christians . . . Christianity is the miracle of a changed heart and a personal relationship with the living God.”

Finally, from the Apostle Paul: “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

The bottom line of the issue is that if you do not have the Spirit of God living within you, you cannot understand His Word, therefore you cannot understand the Bible’s relationship to our Constitution. To gain understanding, begin your Bible reading with Genesis 1:1. Continue reading every day until you have read through Revelation 22:21. Note the Bible’s final word: “Amen.”

Note in particular Exodus 20:1-17 and Isaiah 33:22. Read also Matthew 7:13-14, and be sure you have chosen the narrow gate.